In the blink of an eye, it was already November.
A full year had passed since the official outbreak of war with Sunagakure.
Konoha's negotiations with Iwagakure had ultimately collapsed.
Iwa's demands had been outrageously excessive—no one could possibly meet them. Konoha refused outright to pay such an astronomical price, and with that, the ceasefire agreement was tossed aside like scrap paper. War resumed.
This time, however, Iwagakure's morale burned hotter than ever.
They publicly accused Konoha of sending ANBU to infiltrate their village, and combined with the confrontation at Takigakure, the hatred within Iwa had reached a boiling point.
The result—
A lightning-fast escalation.
In just ten days, Iwagakure launched a full-scale invasion, swiftly conquering the Land of Grass and establishing forward bases aimed directly at Konoha.
Their intent was unmistakable.
They were watching Konoha like predators eyeing their prey.
Konoha, in turn, mobilized a large number of shinobi, determined to hold the line and prevent Iwa from breaching the borders of the Land of Fire.
Along the frontier between the two nations, both sides committed significant forces—conducting reconnaissance, probing defenses, and clashing in frequent skirmishes.
Still, on the frontlines, the highest-ranking commander was no longer Minato.
Nor was it Shimizu.
Instead, a more experienced senior shinobi had taken command.
As for the two of them and their respective units—they had been pulled back to Konoha to recuperate.
...
At the Memorial Stone of Konoha, the Third Hokage stood solemnly, reading from a list in his hands.
"This time, those promoted to jōnin are Araki Sei, Hatake Kakashi, Hyūga Hayakumo, Uchiha…, and Yamanaka…"
"Congratulations."
More than a dozen new jōnin had emerged from this round of promotion. Each of them had completed numerous high-risk missions during the wars against both Sunagakure and Iwagakure, and had passed the Hokage's rigorous evaluation.
They were the elite among elites.
Kakashi, in particular, had advanced a full year earlier than expected.
Not only had he successfully developed Chidori, but he had also mastered several of its variations—Chidori Sharp Spear, Chidori Current—demonstrating remarkable proficiency in Lightning Release.
Compared to his twelve-year-old self in another timeline, his current strength was on an entirely different level.
"Kakashi, congratulations."
As soon as the ceremony ended, Shimizu was the first to step forward, offering his sincere praise.
"Huh? Shimizu-senpai?" Kakashi had expected Minato-sensei to be the first to congratulate him, so he looked slightly surprised before smiling faintly. "Thank you."
Soon after, Obito, Rin, and Minato all came forward to offer their congratulations as well.
Among them, Obito loudly declared that by this time next year, he too would become a jōnin.
His bold claim was immediately met with merciless teasing.
Before long, Kakashi was surrounded by a crowd, all offering their praise and admiration.
After all—
An eleven-year-old jōnin was nothing short of extraordinary.
For a brief moment, the joy of promotion managed to push back the shadow of war hanging over the village.
Even Shimizu found it rare to see Kakashi smile like this.
To achieve jōnin rank at such a young age, Kakashi undoubtedly possessed talent far beyond his peers—but more than that, it was the result of relentless training and brutal combat experience.
The village had long spread the legend of the White Fang's son as a once-in-decades prodigy.
But who ever saw the effort behind that genius?
That kind of hellish training…
Even Shimizu wasn't sure he could endure it.
At best, he could only rely on his own "early maturity" to gain a slight advantage in time.
In contrast, another newly promoted jōnin—thirteen-year-old Hyūga Hayakumo—remained far more low-key. As soon as the ceremony ended, he quietly slipped away.
Was it because his teacher, Orochimaru, had yet to return?
From afar, Shimizu also caught sight of Satomi, who had come to attend her younger brother's promotion ceremony.
But… where were their parents?
There seemed to be a story there—one he knew nothing about.
Just then, Shimizu spotted another familiar figure.
"Amane? What are you doing here?"
"Shimizu-senpai," Inohara Amane replied casually. "I had some free time, so I came to take a look at the quality of this batch of jōnin."
"Didn't expect you to care about something like that," Shimizu said, slightly surprised.
"Of course I care," Amane said with a faint smile. "The strength of a village's jōnin directly determines its core power."
Shimizu raised an eyebrow.
This guy, who usually seemed so carefree and unreliable… was actually paying attention to something like the overall strength of Konoha?
"Speaking of which… with your strength, why didn't you take the jōnin exam?"
By all rights, Amane had completed several S-rank missions during this war. He was more than qualified to apply—yet it seemed he hadn't even bothered to sign up.
"That's too troublesome," Amane replied lazily. "Besides, once you become a jōnin, you get listed in enemy intelligence records. I'd rather not have my strengths exposed."
Strengths…?
Shimizu glanced at him.
Does he mean… running fast?
"And being a special jōnin is pretty good," Amane continued with a grin. "If the sky falls, the full jōnin are there to hold it up. The missions aren't as dangerous, and the pay isn't that different."
Shimizu stared at him for a moment.
This guy… really has no ambition at all, does he?
"…Then why did you become a ninja in the first place?"
"Oh, just to make some money, retire early, and open a hot spring for my old age."
"A hot spring?" Shimizu raised a brow. He knew running a ninja tool shop could be profitable, but a hot spring?
He was skeptical.
"A mixed bath," Amane added casually.
"…That actually sounds like it might work."
If it was a mixed bath…
Then yeah, it might really make money.
"I thought so too. At the very least, Jiraiya-senpai would definitely be a regular."
Not just Jiraiya—his fans alone could probably keep the place running long-term.
Amane chuckled. "When that day comes, you've gotta show up and support me, senpai."
"It's just a small favor, right? You wouldn't refuse, would you?"
"…Fine." Shimizu sighed. They had been through life and death together, after all. It really was just a trivial matter.
Though it would require… a bit of shamelessness.
Just imagining himself cutting the ribbon at the grand opening of a mixed bath hot spring—
This is completely the wrong vibe…
"By then, I could even set up a VIP system," Amane went on enthusiastically. "Customers who spend more get discounts and perks."
"Like Jiraiya-senpai—he's loaded. A real big spender."
"Definitely has the potential to be a VIP customer."
Well, of course he was rich. With a bestselling side career writing novels, how could he not be?
Suddenly, Amane tilted his head. "Come to think of it, I haven't seen Jiraiya-senpai in quite a while."
"He's out on a mission," Shimizu replied. "No idea when he'll be back."
"I see… I was starting to worry he'd chased after Tsunade-senpai and left the village with her."
That casual remark made something click in Shimizu's mind.
Wait… could it be?
Had Jiraiya really taken advantage of a mission to go look for Tsunade?
No…
In another life, Jiraiya had loved Tsunade for years—decades, even.
That kind of deep, persistent feeling…
What if that really was his true intention all along?